Felling trees

[zanzibar]

Ulbernaughts and very large creatures should be able to fell trees that block their way, then move over them as if they weren't an obstacle.  This could create a few interesting situations:  While you're travelling, you might see the trees before you fall down to reveal some monstrosity running at you.  If you're already being chased by something, then you might hide behind a line of trees only to discover that it won't do you any good.  Also, trees could make running away more difficult for players while at the same time leaving mobs unaffected and unslowed.  So this would have a dramatic effect as well as a practical one.  Also, certain spells could be used to fell or kill trees, or certain trees.  This could create a few more options in terms of map making and secret areas.

[The Shadow Nose]

On a somewhat related note, I was thinking of a way to allow people to 'cut wood' without changing the code too much.

Basically, you create a monster that looks like a tree (though clearly different than other trees)

Give it little to no attack strength but have exceptional defence. Its death animation would consist of the tree falling over. You could then loot the fallen tree to get sticks, leaves, logs, or fruit if you wish. If pickpocketing becomes available one could 'steal' apples from it.

Just allow monsters to attack one another and add a little more collision detection (so you can't walk right through enemies or other people) and it would aceive about the same effect as this.


Heh, every RPG needs the obigatory plant monster... but ours can have one that actually acts like a plant!

*edit*

Oh, and naturally the 'trees' should be unable to move, turn or give chase to people.

Basically you attack certain trees to chop them down, loot it to get wood from it, and steal from it to pick apples.

I only mention this because it might save code as opposed to making all trees chopable and prevent possible deforrestation. 
make the tree resistant to all but slashing damage from axes and get burned by red-way spells (though I suppose killing it with fire would destroy the wood in it)

Please avoid double-posting. --Karyuu

[Capprion]

 this is one of the best ideas i have seen in a long time . but would look kind of funny to see a tree just sprout from the ground all at once. also be a good idea to make it give 0xp so you couldnt level killing a plant. and maybe make it dull your weapons rapidly,

[Gondric]

err u should get exp for it. Like u get experience for mining.

[Capprion]

maybe 1

[zanzibar]

I'm not sure I like the idea of stealing from trees to get apples from them.  It sounds awkward.

[Capprion]

we do it every day across the world...i do it every day in my back yard. whats so akward ?

[The Shadow Nose]

Well, I really don't have any say on how this would be implemented if at all, but the way I see it working best...

Cutable trees act sort of like monsters or NPCs. They stay in one place and gradually generate fruits in their inventory [if monstsers or NPCs even have inventory] after a while, they drop fruits which appear on the ground and vanish after a while. Though they do it occasionally so it doesn't litter the server. This acts like what fruit trees do in real life.

To get apples before they drop, either steal from them or there could be another option made especially for plants called "Harvest" or something. like /harvest tree would search it for fruits and then put some in your inventory.

Cutting down a tree you could then loot it for wood fruit, or leaves or any other resource that might be needed in the future.

I think one should be able to get experience from cutting down a tree for two reasons. First, its basically like mining in that its a menial task, so you should be able to grow stronger from the excercise you cet from cutting a tree. Also, a tree could be used for target practice. If you are training archery or spellcasting, you could take shots at a tree, mainly for the practice points. Since a tree can't attack, you can't trian armor with it.

But when it comes down to it, the main ways to fell a tree should be from cutting it down with an axe. So instead of adding a 'woodcutting' job skill, just have woodcutters train in their 'axe' combat skill to cut down trees. You could probably cut it down with a sword... but it would take a really long time. Kind of like in real life.


And as for a tree suddenly growing all at once... what's up with all the ulbernaughts growing up all at once? or tefusangs? or Gladiators? Heh, its just one of the things we have to accept for now, nothing to complain about.

Other minor note: on the subject of cutting trees being treated as a combat action, it would also mean that a woodcutters axe would dull down using the same basic code as weapons dull in normal combat. Not sure if thats a good thing, but it would mean that woodcutters would have to maintain their axes and couldn't cut down whole forrests too easily.

[Quitarias]

so youre saying that by cuting a tree i can learn to chop ppls heads off i think the skill should be implimented because there would surely be PL(Power levelers) who train on trees if trees have high def i could take my newb sword and go chop trees instead of rats annd sell the wood and fruit couldnt i

[zanzibar]

so youre saying that by cuting a tree i can learn to chop ppls heads off

I find that to be more realistic than connecting picking apples to pinching pockets.

[Narure]

it would make more sense if you could only train the skill in question to a certain level by cutting down trees, like you can only be taught up to a certain level by npcs.

[zanzibar]

it would make more sense if you could only train the skill in question to a certain level by cutting down trees, like you can only be taught up to a certain level by npcs.

Then that should be true for everything.  I should only get so good at daggers by poking holes in rats.  Eventually, I'll should have to try my luck at humanoids in order to better my skills.

[The Shadow Nose]

so youre saying that by cuting a tree i can learn to chop ppls heads off i think the skill should be implimented because there would surely be PL(Power levelers) who train on trees if trees have high def i could take my newb sword and go chop trees instead of rats annd sell the wood and fruit couldnt i

How could you power-level by chopping down a tree?

Think of it this way.

The tree is a monster that doesn't move, has high HP, high defence, and give about as much xp as digging a piece of ore. [I think 15 xp. thats less than killing a rat]

Imagine attacking an ulbernaught that is set on full defence. It won't kill you. but it would take a long time to kill and probably dull your weapons down a lot.

The only way to 'powerlevel' using this would be to get the practice points for a weapons skill. you basically find a good monster to kill to get XP from [to get progression points to spend on training] then go attack a tree to hone your weapons skills. Imagine it to be something like target practice.

Sure, you can loot the wood and apples from a tree, but you can also loot tails, hides, and eyes from rats which would probably take a lot less time to get a sizable amount of money from.


And yeah, I think that there should be a level cap on how much you can get from training on certain animals. A master swordsman wouldn't be able to trian his skills much using rats... and he should be able to learn something from a tree. Mainly being able to hit a stationary object. After a while, he could easily kill a tree or any other stationary enemy, but would have to train with something else if he plans to fight an enemy with the ability to move.

Though stealing from trees... I suppose a person could train a little [train to carefully twist an apple from the stem so the trees limbs don't shake when you pluck the apple] but it wouldn't be quite the same as picking from a pocket. Though I suppose if a person has a hankerchief hanging out of their pocket, it would be about the same difficulty. [taking a henkercheif without the person noticing as opposed to taking an apple without the limbs moving].

But in the end, I just mentioned using pickpocket to get apples because its the in-game way to get items from a living thing without killing them. I mean, unless you '/use' a tree to get fruit from it or something... but that would make them objects instead of monsters...

Or make them like mines so you '/pick apples' for apples and if you try it on an orange tree your character says "I don't see a good place to pick fruit..."

[grenkar]

Just to make this matter all the more confusing, lets add syrup!

I think, if all the above were to be implimented, you should be able to buy taps so that you could stick them in trees and then come back later to loot the tap.

If it was to be made so that monsters could attack other monsters like suggested above, then the tap could be like a familiar that you summon to attack the tree, while this battle is going on, you can go about and do what you please, then once the battle is over, you could come back and loot the tap for syrup, pull it out (unsummon it) and move on to the next tree.

Of course it would only be certain species of trees you could do this to (like maples.)

[zanzibar]

It would probably be better if a new system was created for all things agriculture... things could get messy if trees and taps etc were treated as familiars and NPCs.